From Escape To Joy – My Asana Journey

‘Not even a single Push-Up I could do.’ This was me on the first day of the class. And as the first class came into the flow with lots of unheard asana, and as they introduced HEADSTAND then n there I realized that I have jumped into the YTT course without any prior experience. One thought that day was to escape since it seemed impossible for me. People around me were doing sirsasana and for me sarvangasana also seemed like beyond the bounds of possibility. But the next thing what I could hear from within was GO AHEAD, you have got the way. Just go and follow the path. It gave me a positive push.

After 15 months of second C-section, the biggest challenge for me was to work on “The Core Strength”. During early days of practice it was quite tiring but when I did for some time, I realized sudden improvement in my stamina and I became more agile. Doing exercise to strengthen core made me feel balanced. With this little improvement I could feel the difference in doing poses like the Uttanasana, Prasarita Padottanasana and all kinds of forward bends. Ujjayi breathing also was helpful now and the most important thing I was able to control my breathing now during the poses. The happiness of getting into a pose correctly is when I started to enjoy doing yoga.

Adho Mukha Svanasana, a subway sandwich comprising all the vegetables and pickles. In my first week I was not able to figure out which vegetable to concentrate, if I worked on one, some of the others would slip out of the sandwich. Coming in every sun salutation series, this pose is for resting and controlling the breaths. Pushing the body weight back would always result in my hands sliding on the mat. Then I realized that I was not lengthening my tailbone. Doing that automatically lengthened the spine and also take tension out of the wrists. Wow, now my sandwich is becoming yummier each time.

6 years ago when I used to practice yoga at home, I never ever even thought of trying any kind of inversions. This was a thing I always used to fear in life, how whole of the body weight can come on few parts. It was one of chapters I never attempted to touch by the time I came to Tirisula Yoga. I always used to think that doing the inversion is not my ‘Cup Of Tea’ and was very well sitting with that belief. Knowing that this pose had lots of benefits, I always wanted to come into that. But when I visualized the pose, there were certainly many question such as ‘when I support my body with hands, how are my fingers going take it??’ and ‘what will my shoulders hold the weight of my tummy?’ . One day during the practice, Master Paalu helped me to come up in sarvangasana and it didn’t feel like all of the weight is coming on my shoulders. From here on I just moved on step by step towards it. Did the variation with the wall, stacking up the blankets and yup I could reach there.